Eidos, the company who brought us Lara Croft,
caused quit a stir when they released this hybrid
action/adventure, Omikron: The Nomad Soul,
and billed it to be true to both genres. The
advertisements were enticing -- reincarnation,
magic, fighting, as well as an engrossing
adventure plot. I was eager to see if the ads were
true or just another dose of hype.

The game's plot centers around soul-jumping from
body to body to escape capture by evil
demons. This reincarnation is an original concept
and gives you the opportunity to become 30
different characters. You begin by jumping into
the body of Kay'l, who pleads with you for
help. As Kay'l, you are plunged into the immense,
futuristic world that is Omikron.

Action and adventure gamers alike have expressed a
"love/hate" relationship with
Omikron. There is so very much to like
about it -- and, at the same time, so many things
that are completely exasperating. For instance,
the in-game map is a wonderful feature, while the
method for saving games is so ridiculously
difficult. You must seek out permanent, pre-set
"Save/Advice Points" to save your game, plus you
must have a sufficient number of "Magic Rings" to
do so. Inventory management is frustrating, too,
forcing the player to choose only 18 items at one
time out of hundreds of available items. The
action scenes, while diverse and exciting, are way
too hard, even with the difficulty level set to
Easy.

So, you say, what is there to love about
Omikron? The versatility of the many
characters, the original music score, graphically
intense cities, the adventure storyline, to name a
few. The game is immersive, finding its way into
your daily thoughts and invading your dreams at
night. It may take months to complete, leaving
you triumphant but completely drained.

Most actions are accomplished with a keyboard (or
joystick), while your mouse is used for direction
and looking around the 3D world. The 36-page
manual, while covering the keyboard/joystick
controls fairly well, deceives you about many of
the other features. Keeping the manual handy while
playing will familiarize you with the Interface,
but some things were obviously changed after the
manual was published.

Adventure gamers will be pleased to know that
Omikron is not mostly action. Action and
adventure elements are dispersed evenly throughout
the game. The plot does not deteriorate as the
game progresses, and it unfolds very
gradually. The progression during the adventure
portions is somewhat linear, but exploration can
be done freely in between the required
actions. There are puzzles of various types to be
solved, inventory items to be secured and
manipulated, and hundreds of characters for
interaction. The puzzles range from easy to
medium in difficulty and are well integrated into
the story. I never felt that a puzzle was
inserted without reason.

Action gamers will find many elements in this game
to their liking -- the methods for improving
character levels, visually exciting hand-to-hand
combat combination moves, numerous and challenging
gun battles with a variety of weapons and
ammunition. Having a gamepad hooked your computer
might help you maneuver your character through the
jumping and swimming segments, since using the
keyboard was awkward at times.

If you like rock music, especially if you are a
David Bowie fan, you will love the totally
original soundtrack, which Bowie created
exclusively for Omikron. As a bonus within
the game itself, attend "secret concerts" where he
and the "Dreamers" perform. Pick up "tapes" of the
songs and play them on a special machine. You have
the chance to meet and talk with David Bowie, too,
when he plays a character part in the game. For a
sampling of the music, visit David Bowie's Eidos
Web Site.

The 3D graphical world you explore is large and
impressive. Futuristic in design, the graphics are
somewhat boxy, as is true for many action games,
but they are still nicely done. Each location is
individual in its appearance, different yet
consistent with the overall atmosphere. The
designers were fairly successful in matching up
facial expressions and lip-sync during
conversations.

It took me over two months to finish
Omikron. I'll admit I had to restart twice
because of errors in judgment in the early
portions of gameplay. There is minimal disk
swapping between the game's 3 CD-ROMs, which are
packaged in a sturdy cardboard case. My system
experienced no technical problems worth reporting.
I have heard that others have had various
problems, many solved by choosing the "Full"
installation rather than the "Standard," which I
used.

In conclusion, I'd rate Omikron only 3
stars, even though it may be one of the best
action/adventure games to be released in recent
years. Designers of cross-genre games for the
computer still have much to learn, as is obvious
here. Forcing a player to save games only at
pre-set locations, and not including enough of
those locations, degrades the gaming
experience. And, why limit the amount of inventory
items we can carry? Most RPGs include better
inventory management systems than what was
provided in this game. On the plus side are the
graphics and music, the numerous interactive
non-player characters and inventory items, the
length of gameplay, the good split of adventure
and action, and the overall storyline. It was
fun to play, even with its shortcomings,
and I was sorry to see it end.